It appears Upwork is going Public

[#1]

It appears that Upwork is going Public:  https://www.marketwatch.com/story/tech-firms-eventbrite-and-upwork-prepare-to-go-public-2018-04-12

[#2]

Thanks for this info Pat! Interesting . . . I wonder how this will affect the users of this site, and indeed if another merger is in sight. 

[#3]

With $1 million in funding under their belt, why is the platform still plagued with outages and bugs?

I did think it was interesting that the site was described as a place for freelancers to find leads and not a place where people could hire a freelancer.

That's a clear distinction.

[#4]

Could this somehow be linked to the issue of pushing US clients to hire US freelancers?

That is an honest question by the way, because it seems that there might be some connection, but I really have no idea.

[#5]

Dare we hope if U. gets an infusion of capital the infrastructure will get much needed upgrades?

And this certainly explains why a real ad agency was brought in.  🙂

[#6]

heck they might get the money to fix the feedback removal problem for top rated freelancers.

Nah, it will probably go to something more important like plants for the offices.

[#7]

I think we're in for another merger - unless there is announcement to tell us otherwise. 

[#8]

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@Nichola L wrote:

I think we're in for another merger -

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 No chance. A merger around the same time as going public is suicide.Surely you remember the mess past the last takeover (thinly disguised as "a merger".)

Plus, there isn't a suitable competitor currently flailing and sinking fast enough to be gobbled up except possibly one but it's not the time.

[#9]

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@Daniel F wrote:

Could this somehow be linked to the issue of pushing US clients to hire US freelancers?

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?!?

I'm failing to see a link between Upwork going public and this.

[#10]

I had to post and run yesterday.  Initially this news struck me as far more positive than negative; especially the fact that if UW moves forward, they'll receive new capital.  Of course that can assist the overall platform in an abundance of ways.

Upon further consideration I continue to believe there's more positive than negative in this news.  A few of my reasons are:

1.  UW will have to become more accountable/transparent as previous private information will continually need to be revealed to shareholders, the SEC...

2.  UW will become even more visible than they currently are which will increase the # of FL AND Clients to the platform; hopefully more so viable ones than not.

3.  Potential for stock options

One of the potential negatives I've thought of is that due to all of the required fees and costs overall IPO costs are extremely high.  The platform may suffer during the process.

Within my overall thought process I was disappointed that we didn't learn of this news from UW.  Evidently they had their reasons for not sharing with us.   

[#11]

I'm planning on buying stock for sure.

Not that they would every blow me off as a freelancer, but they certainly woudn't blow me off as a shareholder.  It's why I invest in Duncan Donuts :o)

[#12]

OK Upwork - we are all agog - are there any mods out there who dare comment on this thread? 😄

[#13]

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@Daniel F wrote:

Could this somehow be linked to the issue of pushing US clients to hire US freelancers?

That is an honest question by the way,

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 There are many reasons.  One of them could be that since US freelancers charge more than other places, the contract size is bigger.  Bigger contract size = more commission.

[#14]

MFG aus Zajecar, Daniel. Will spend some time this summer in Austria with my family there. That's also one of my biggest concerns too. Gruesse! Stefan

[#15]

It's kinda cool to learn that there's now a stock that directly depends on our success (or failure).

Now keep that in mind, Upwork! We can make the arrows go up or down.

[#16]

Several of us have expressed our thoughts/opinions regarding Upwork going Public.  IMO it'd be interesting to know others' points of view regarding this as well.     

[#17]

When it happens Pat, there will be all sorts of squawks from the chicken run and "why weren't we told" messages and "what's going to happen to us" and the mods will be busy telling us that they can't tell us the details and apologizing and carrying on as mods generally do. 

It seems to me that most people have their heads so buried in the sand that they don't know or don't care (yet) what an IPO means. A bit like the war against chemical weapons that is too far away from California for it to have any real meaning (yet).

[#18]

Adding to Nichola's comment-

1. only a very small % of users read the forums

2. even less comment

3. most do not have a clue how this might/could impact them (as others have noted)

Be grateful; can you imagine the outcry, confusion, weeps, wails, and teeth-gnashing when users finally figure it out?

[#19]

Nichola posted:

When it happens Pat, there will be all sorts of squawks from the chicken run and "why weren't we told" messages and "what's going to happen to us" and the mods will be busy telling us that they can't tell us the details and apologizing and carrying on as mods generally do. 

It seems to me that most people have their heads so buried in the sand that they don't know or don't care (yet) what an IPO means. A bit like the war against chemical weapons that is too far away from California for it to have any real meaning (yet).

Wendy posted: 

Adding to Nichola's comment-

1. only a very small % of users read the forums
2. even less comment
3. most do not have a clue how this might/could impact them (as others have noted)

Be grateful; can you imagine the outcry, confusion, weeps, wails, and teeth-gnashing when users finally figure it out?

_________________________________________________________________________ 

Nichola and Wendy, SO sad but unfortunately probably SO true!

[#20]

Update:  UW supposedly confidentially filed for it's IPO a few days ago.  If you're interested in learning more, there's at least two articles you can easily locate regarding this.

[#21]

Pat, if the article you're referring to was published on Jul 25, 2018 > it is an interesting read.

[#22]

[Michael A. Brooks] What Can Upwork IPO Learn From Freelancer.com’s Stock Roller-Coaster?

[#23]

BTW, Michael Brooks has his own freelancer site for what it's worth...

[#24]

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@Mary W wrote:

BTW, Michael Brooks has his own freelancer site for what it's worth...

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 Going by the standard of his writing, he clearly needs all the help he can get... 

[#25]

Wendy, i'll try to reply to your post:

1. you're very right. very few users read the forums. why? WELL hidden. even when found, it's difficult to navigate. 

2. those who make it to the forum usually have a problem, not some big secrets to spill.. 

3. i am one of those who have no idea how this move [of upwork going public] will affect me. I'm not even sure what 'going public' means in this context -im not good with economy, and im not from the US. there are MANY users just like me...

your assumptions are actually facts.. and i'm a bit concerned now...